Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Darker than Ebony ❯ ...And a Pink Carnation ( Chapter 6 )

Disclaimer: *copy and paste generic disclaimer here* The chapter title is from a song entitled: "A white sport coat and a pink carnation" which again is older than the author. I actually like researching songs for this fic, all I have to do is turn on the radio!

Dedication: This is for you SMDSP. Don't you guys know by now that SMDSP and I are friends?? I mean the whole dedications between us are just our picking on each other. I mean we both have this unhealthy obsession with Vegeta so I wrote a yaoi fic for her (since she always says she doesn't like yaoi but tends to read it…have you infiltrated the yaoi stronghold again agent Double O Zero?) and she kills Vegeta in the first chapter of a fic she dedicated to me. Go read "Coping" by her…you'll see! Now quit flaming her about this! Just meep her, go on, she loves it…trust me…

Warnings: Lemon, starts out PWP but I think the plot is kinda developing quite nicely, and slightly TWT (set during Saiyaman Saga but no World Martial Arts tournament and no Goku or Buu). Note on timeline: Even though there is no World Tournament, Videl did get Gohan to teach her to fly before the fic started. And there are cliques but let's just have fun with them, all right?

A/N: There was never supposed to be another part to "Darker than Ebony" but my muse had other plans. And my muse is still Renegade Phoenix. You know, if she didn't bug me daily about writing, I'd never get anything done.

A/N 2: yes, I changed the title of the fic. I found a better title that will have something to do with the story later on. It was only called "Darker than Ebony" because that was the name of the one shot this started out as! Ok on with the fic, this time it's Gohan's POV.

A/N 3: Anyone notice that my notes at the beginning of my chapters are longer than some people's fics? And just for your entertainment, I am drinking milk with Hershey's syrup in it right now for inspiration!

Well, I've been a father for almost a week. Me, a father! I still can't believe it! The whole time prior to the birth the thought of my becoming a parent was an abstract glimmer of cognition. There was very little about it that was as concrete as holding my child for the first time. There was just something about staring into tiny, little black eyes that blinked at the bright, new world. It took my breath away then and even thinking about it now does the same.

The little one is sleeping soundly in the bassinet across from me right now. I am sitting in Bulma's kitchen trying to catch up on my schoolwork while I have time. The baby is on a feeding schedule that is just shy of two hours right now and it is really taking its toll on Vegeta and I already. I've been absent from school for two weeks now. At first it was because I did not want to leave my mate alone in case he went into labor. Then it was to take care of him and the baby. Poor thing, Vegeta that is, is so weak and sore from giving birth that I feel really bad for him. It was a very long labor that was hard for everyone especially my mate.

He's, hopefully, sleeping in our room right now while the baby is asleep also. There were no sensu beans ready enough to give to him after he gave birth so he has to heal naturally. He's already trying to do too much without letting himself recuperate properly. Bulma caught him trying to sneak into the Gravity Chamber yesterday. Luckily, she still has not changed the gravity generation system back to its original settings so Vegeta could not really have done anything in there anyways.

So, until he's back up to one hundred percent, I have elected to stay home and take care of the baby. I can't really say that I regret the decision. I love every minute of time I spend with my child. But then again, I also am starting to go stir crazy in this house. Sure, I've taking the little on out on a walk around Capsul Corps grounds but that's not exactly what I'm talking about. I miss my friends at school. It's kind of lame, I know. I'm not really like them at all anymore but then again, I never really was to begin with. They are just high school kids looking forward to the spring dance and wondering whom they are going to ask. I'm sitting here, basically married (to any Saiyan, Vegeta and I are married) and I am already a father. I'm not exactly in the same stage of life that they are any more. Of course, if one considers that I've never been the same species as they are but we were still friends, then I don't really see how this will make much of a difference.

As if sensing my contemplation about my friends, Bulma enters the kitchen. I look up from my book to see her smiling at me strangely. I cock my head at her odd expression. Her smile broadens at my confusion.

"It seems that you have some visitors, Gohan," she finally says to me.

"What?" I really do not know who these visitors could be. If Goten came over here, he would not wait for Bulma to tell me he came, he'd just run straight for me and hug me before I could say his name. I doubt my mom would come here so who can it be I wonder. "How can I have visitors when no one knows I'm here?"

"I don't know about that, but there are three people here from your school to see you. Do you want me to take the baby into the other room so they don't find out?"
"No," I will never in my life hide my child. I am not ashamed that I have a baby with the person I love. "That will not be necessary."

She just raises a blue eyebrow and then smiles warmly. As she leaves the room, I run a hand through my unkempt hair in an effort to tame it. I need a haircut badly and I did not spend much time this morning trying to comb it because of the baby needing fed and changed. My grooming is cut short as three people enter the kitchen through the door Bulma just exited.

Erasa races forward and hugs me, "Hi stranger!"

Sharpner looks like he's about to throttle me for Erasa hugging me. I really have to set that poor boy straight that I have no interest in the blonde girl. Videl just stands back and watches as her two cohorts greet me and then offers a brief hello.

"So, where have you been man?" Sharpner starts off as he flips a kitchen chair around and sits on it backwards.

"You haven't been sick have you?" Erasa asks very concerned and here I was worried that my friend's wouldn't even notice that I wasn't there.

"No, I haven't been sick," I explain while I try to think of what to tell them. "How did you guys know I was here?"

This time, Videl choose to speak up, "Well, since Mr. Aced-all-the-entrance-exams actually missed a few days, we thought that something very bad had happened. At first we thought that the world had come to an end but when that was found to be wrong, we decided to look into the issue."

"Yeah, we were so worried that Videl went to the school office and asked if they heard anything from you. The secretary said that you had called in and said that you had some 'family issues' that required you to miss school for a while," Erasa continues. "Then she went to your house because she was the one who knew where you lived but you were there."
"I can imagine the reception you received while there…" I roll my eyes at that thought.

"Yeah, your mom was practically yelling and throwing things. It was kind of scary, especially what she was saying," the dark haired girl continues. "She was saying something about you being kidnapped and taken advantage of by some alien monster she kicked you out of the house so you were living at Capsul Corps, if that makes any sense!"

I just have to sit there and laugh for a minute. My mother was definitely something, I don't know what but she is. "Well, that's not entirely true. An alien kidnapped me once but that was when I was four. I haven't been taken advantage of, because everything I do is of my own free will. And then, yes, she did kick me out of her house and I am living here at Capsul Corps."

The just stare at me for a minute trying to take in what I just said. "You are a very strange boy, Gohan. Are you sure you're not sick?"

"Nah…I'm not sick…" I start but I am interrupted. It seems someone is hungry like a Saiyan and is demanding food the only way they know how: Crying at the top of their lungs.

"What the Hell?" Sharpner exclaims looking around frantically for the source of the wailing. Erasa and Videl on the other hand home in on the bassinet and peer down on the infant. They both give a collective "awe" and then Videl's eyes snap back to me. I smirk as an effect of living with my Prince for these past months. I get up from my place at the table and reach gently down to pick up the crying infant.

"Umm… so I guess you know why I haven't been in school…"

"Holy shit, nerd-boy-wonder has spawned!" Sharpner in is vast eloquence exclaims.

I smile warmly down at the squirming bundle in my arms. The same deep black eyes twinkle up at me as they did a few days ago when she was born. Her little fists flail in the air in protest to an empty stomach as she voices her hunger with lungs that work extremely well. I reach down and brush my hand over her soft, black spikes of baby hair to calm my little one.

"It is your kid isn't, Gohan?" Videl asks nervously. Well, she's always wanted to know all of my secretes since the first day of school at Orange Star High School, I guess now's as good as time as any.

"Well, guys, I'd…ah…like to introduce you to… ah... my daughter," I can't believe how nervous I am now. I know I have some explaining to do but I am not sure how much I am going to have divulge about my past to get them to understand.

"She's precious! Aren't you little one…awe…aren't you just the cutest little…" Erasa digresses into high-pitched gibberish while talking to my little girl.

The infant starts to cry again, true to her heritage that is being more pureblooded Saiyan than I am; her hunger is not to be ignored. "Do you want to hold her, Erasa? I need to get a bottle for her."

I pass my little bundle of joy (which is more like tears at this very moment because her of protests) to one of my blonde friends and I head to the refrigerator. I grab an already prepared bottle for the full shelves inside. From my experience with Goten being a baby and from Bulma's lectures, I know that I can't just feed her with a cold bottle so I warm the bottle slightly using my ki. It was a little trick I figured out about two days ago around three in the morning. I return to the table and reclaim my progeny so I can quell her hunger.

"You never told us her name," Erasa states as she watches me feed the infant.

"Kinoko," I say as I gently rock the child in my arms. She squirms slight and I start to croon to her in low tones to calm her down. What I forget is, that when I talk to her, I tend to use the Saiyan language that I learned from Vegeta while he was pregnant. We had decided that she would have a Saiyan name and would be raised to know about her heritage and to be proud of it, which meant that we would have to use Vegeta's native language to do so.

"I've never heard that name…" Videl's voice trails off as her eyes narrow for a second and then quickly become the size of saucers. "What's that?"

I play dumb for a minute but I think I know what she saw. "What's what?"

"She…has a tail?" Videl stutters, which cause me, chuckle. Well, that's as good as place as any to start my explanation. That way maybe I can only explain to them about Saiyans without having to go into our fighting. I think that point would really throw Videl for a loop.

"Of course, Kinko has a tail! What do you think this is?" I unwrap mine from around my waist and wave it where they can see it.

"Shit, is that real?" Sharpner asks.

"That's just not normal!" Videl gasps.

"Of course it's normal, for a Saiyan," I begin. I continue on to explain about Saiyans, their species as a whole's difference from humans, how they are all but extinct, and their unique genders. It takes two more bottles to finish feeding Kinoko and finish my explanation.

I wait for a moment looking into their faces to see how they are taking the revelation that their friend is an alien, well half alien. They range from utter shock to slight misunderstanding to stonewall. Videl finally breaks the silence.

"So, you never did tell us who the mother is," she states as if she is just going to ignore everything I just told her. I think she's ok with everything though from the way she just moves on.

Before I get a chance to say anything, the person in questions wanders into the room and straight to the refrigerator. Everyone remains silent for a moment as he pulls out a few items and then walks over to the cupboard. He pulls out five glasses and pours milk in one. He then sets the other four glasses on the table along with the carton of milk.

"Aren't you going to offer your friends a drink?" Vegeta asks me in Saiyan so the others don't hear him halfway being nice. He turns and leaves without saying another word. A glass of milk is in one of his hands and the chocolate syrup is in the other.

I chuckle and offer introductions towards his retreating back. "Guys, meet Vegeta. Vegeta, meet the guys…"

Their mouths gape and I just sit there and smirk. Kinoko just cuddles into me as I rock her and she coos contently. At least now, I'm not all that alone here since I now have friends whom I can talk to. My happy little moment is quickly brought to an abrupt stop when I smell something that can only come from the wrong end of a baby. She just giggles and looks up at me as innocently as a child of Vegeta's could and I get the feeling that she did it on purpose. Well, in the words of my mate: If I can defeat Cell, then I am perfectly capable of changing a dirty diaper. Sometimes I don't know about that though.